It is known to monitor supply of an item by creating a database record including details of the type of item, details of the seller of the item, and details of the purchaser of the item.
However, with such a system, once an item has been sold it is difficult if not impossible to trace the manufacturer of the item, the seller of the item and/or the valid owner of the item and, for this reason, it is often difficult to quickly establish whether an item is counterfeit or has been stolen. Also, in the event of occurrence of a fault with the item, it is often difficult to attribute responsibility for the fault with the appropriate individual(s) associated with the item manufacturer.
In this specification, it will be understood that the term “item” refers to any article which is to be supplied to a recipient, including a purchasable article, an item of property such as a house the ownership of which is to be transferred to a purchaser, an article of luggage, and so on. It will also be understood that the term “supplier” refers to any individual or organisation involved in transferring an item from one individual or organisation to another individual or organisation. Examples of “suppliers” include manufacturers, sellers, luggage handlers and transportation organisations, and so on.